Purpose: Administration of this program has been moved
from the higher education coordinating board (HECB) to the
state board for community and technical colleges and the WAC
moved to chapter 131-49 WAC. Technical changes have been made
to update WAC citations, references to the HECB, and
references to 1999-2001 contracts.

WAC 131-49-010
Purpose.
The Displaced Homemaker Act,
chapter 28B.04 RCW establishes guidelines under which the
((higher education coordinating board)) state board for
community and technical colleges shall contract to establish
both multipurpose service centers and programs of service to
provide necessary training opportunities, counseling and
services for displaced homemakers so that they may enjoy the
independence and economic security vital to a productive life.
This chapter is promulgated by the board to establish
necessary regulations for the operation of the displaced
homemaker program.

(3) "Appropriate job opportunities" means opportunities
to be gainfully employed, as defined in subsection (9) of this
section, in jobs which build upon all relevant skills and
potential skills of the individual displaced homemaker,
including opportunities in jobs which in the past may not
generally have been considered traditional for women.

(4) "Center" means a multipurpose service center as
defined in subsection (10) of this section.

(5) "Board" means the ((higher education coordinating
board)) state board for community and technical colleges.

(6) "Displaced homemaker" means an individual who:

(a) Has worked in the home for ten or more years
providing unsalaried household services for family members on
a full-time basis; and

(b) Is not gainfully employed;

(c) Needs assistance in securing employment; and

(d) Meets one of the following criteria;

(i) Has been dependent on the income of another family
member but is no longer supported by that income; or

(ii) Has been dependent on federal assistance but is no
longer eligible for that assistance; or

(iii) Is supported as the parent of minor children by
public assistance or spousal support, but whose youngest child
is within two years of reaching majority.

(7) "Executive director" means the executive director of
the board.

(8) "Executive officer" of the sponsoring organization
means the chief executive or senior officer of the
organization.

(9) "Gainfully employed" means employed for salary or
wages on a continuing basis and earning at least an amount
equal to the standard of need established under RCW 74.04.770.

(10) "Multipurpose service center" means a center
contracted for under the act, which either provides directly,
or provides information about and referral to, each type of
program of service as defined in subsection (14) of this
section.

(11) "Objective" means a purpose of a program of service
which can be quantified and for which objective measurements
of performance can be established.

(12) "Displaced homemaker program" means the program of
contracts for multipurpose service centers and programs of
service for displaced homemakers authorized by the act.

(13) "Program" means a program of service as defined in
subsection (14) of this section.

(14) "Program of service" means one of the specific
services listed in subdivisions (a) through (g) of this
subsection, and meeting the criteria set forth in the
subdivision.

(a) Job counseling services, which shall:

(i) Be specifically designed for displaced homemakers;

(ii) Counsel displaced homemakers with respect to
appropriate job opportunities (as defined in subsection (3) of
this section); and

(iii) Take into account and build upon the skills and
experience of a homemaker and emphasize job readiness as well
as skill development.

(b) Job training and job placement services, which shall:

(i) Emphasize short-term training programs and programs
which expand upon homemaking skills and volunteer experience
and which prepare the displaced homemaker to be gainfully
employed as defined in subsection (9) of this section;

(ii) Develop, through cooperation with state and local
government agencies and private employers, model training and
placement programs for jobs in the public and private sectors;

(iii) Assist displaced homemakers in gaining admission to
existing public and private job training programs and
opportunities, including vocational education and
apprenticeship training programs; and

(iv) Assist in identifying community needs and creating
new jobs in the public and private sectors.

(i) Provide information and assistance with respect to
insurance, taxes, estate and probate problems, mortgages,
loans and other related financial matters; and

(ii) Include referral, wherever feasible and appropriate,
to public legal assistance programs staffed by attorneys.

(e) Educational services, which shall:

(i) Include outreach and information about courses
offering credit through secondary or postsecondary education
programs, and other reentry programs, including bilingual
programming where appropriate; and

(ii) Include information about such other programs
determined by the board to be of interest and benefit to
displaced homemakers, and for which appropriate informational
materials have been provided by the board.

(f) Legal counseling and referral services, which shall:

(i) Be limited to matters directly related to problems of
displaced homemakers;

(ii) Be supplemental to financial management services as
defined in subdivision (d) of this subsection; and

(g) General outreach and information services with
respect to federal and state employment, education, health,
public assistance, and unemployment assistance programs which
the board may determine to be of interest and benefit to
displaced homemakers, and for which the board distributes
appropriate informational materials.

(15) "Reaching majority" means reaching age eighteen.

(16) "Sponsoring organization" means a public
institution, agency or governmental entity, or a chartered
private nonprofit institution or organization which has legal
authority to submit an application, enter into a contract, and
provide the programs of service covered by the application,
and which agrees to provide supervision and financial
management to ensure compliance with the terms and conditions
of the contract.

(17) "Training for service providers" means activities
which provide training for persons serving the needs of
displaced homemakers.

(18) "Statewide outreach and information services" means
activities designed to make general outreach and information
services for displaced homemakers available throughout
Washington including but not limited to areas directly served
by multipurpose service centers or other programs of service
under the displaced homemaker program.

(19) "Subsistence" means support provided to, or paid to
recipients for support services including all living expenses,
child care, and transportation.

(20) "Performance indicators" means expected levels of
services and outcomes as established by the executive director
and made available in the application guidelines.

(21) "Initial contract" means a contract awarded based on
a competitive process and the evaluation of an initial
application.

(22) "Renewal contract" means a contract awarded to a
current sponsoring organization for the ensuing biennium,
based on the evaluation of a renewal application.

WAC 131-49-060
Eligibility to apply for contracts.
Either an initial or renewal application for a contract to
provide either a multipurpose service center or one or more
programs of service for displaced homemakers or training for
service providers may be submitted by a sponsoring
organization, as defined in WAC ((250-44-040)) 131-49-040(16).

(1) The board shall require appropriate documentation of
the nonprofit status of an applicant that is nonpublic.

(2) Organizations that apply as a consortium shall submit
a single application. The application shall be submitted by
the sponsoring organization that will serve as fiscal agent
for the consortium.

WAC 131-49-070
Calendar and closing dates for
applications and awards.
(1) Applications for both initial
and renewal contracts to provide services to displaced
homemakers shall be submitted by eligible organizations
pursuant to WAC ((250-44-040)) 131-49-040(16) by the date
specified in the contract application guidelines.

(2) The executive director of the board shall approve
awards of contracts, provided qualifying applications were
received by the closing dates specified in the application
guidelines.

(3) In the event that available funds for contracts under
the act are not fully utilized after approval of contracts,
the executive director shall either establish a new calendar
for further consideration of applications and award of
contracts, or award supplemental funds to existing centers and
programs by amendment of contracts in effect, or award
supplemental funds for targeted displaced homemaker program
initiatives.

WAC 131-49-100
Required assurances.
No contract shall
be awarded unless the sponsoring organization includes in its
application the following assurances:

(1) No person in this state, on the grounds of sex, age,
race, color, religion, national origin, or the presence of any
sensory, mental, or physical handicap, shall be excluded from
participating in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected
to discrimination under, any program or activity funded in
whole or in part with funds made available under the act;

(2) The sponsoring organization shall actively seek to
employ for all staff positions supported by funds provided
under the act, and for all staff positions supported by
matching funds under any contract, including supervisory,
technical and administrative positions, persons who qualify as
displaced homemakers;

(3) Services provided to displaced homemakers under the
contract shall be provided without payment of any fees for the
services: Provided, That the executive director may approve
exceptions to this requirement upon determining that such
exceptions would be in the best interest of displaced
homemaker program objectives;

(4) First priority for all services provided under the
contract shall be given to persons who qualify in all regards
as displaced homemakers. Other persons in need of the
services due to similar circumstances may be assisted if
provision of such assistance shall not in any way interfere
with the provision of services to displaced homemakers as
defined in the act. The sponsoring organization shall include
in its reports separate and distinct accountability for
services to displaced homemakers and to other persons in need
of the services;

(5) The sponsoring organization agrees to comply in full
with the accounting and reporting requirements set forth in
WAC ((250-44-190)) 131-49-190 and such other accounting and
reporting requirements as may be established by the executive
director.

(6) The sponsoring organization agrees to participate in
evaluation procedures, including the use of all specified
uniform client classification forms for persons to whom
services are provided, and specified uniform evaluation
questionnaires;

(7) The sponsoring organization will actively seek to
coordinate activities under the contract with related
activities and services provided by other organizations;

(8) The sponsoring organization understands and agrees
that payments from the board under the contract will be
provided monthly or quarterly upon submission and approval of
payment requests in a form and containing information
specified by the executive director of the board, and that
approval of payments shall be conditioned upon the executive
director's determination that the sponsoring organization is
in compliance with the terms of the contract and this chapter;

(9) The executive officer of the sponsoring organization
has reviewed the application, including all assurances
contained therein, and is authorized to submit the application
and execute a contract in accordance with the application if
it is approved by the board; and

(10) The executive director and staff of the board will
be provided access to financial and other records pursuant to
the contract.

WAC 131-49-110
Criteria for selection of contracts to be
awarded.
(1) Initial contracts. For each closing date
established as specified in WAC ((250-44-070)) 131-49-070,
applications will be ranked competitively according to their
performance with respect to:

(a) Size of the potential population to be served;

(b) Demonstrated need for the proposed services;

(c) Experience and capabilities of the sponsoring
organization;

(d) Provisions for coordination of services with other
organizations providing related services in the geographic
area.

(2) The executive director shall develop a system for
evaluating initial applications with respect to the
above-stated criteria, and make available in the application
guidelines a description of the system.

(3) Final selection of initial applications to be
approved will be based upon both relative ranking on factors
listed in subsection (1) of this section and appropriate
geographic distribution.

(4) Renewal contracts. The sponsoring organization may
be eligible to renew its contract for one ensuing biennium
provided the sponsoring organization was in full compliance
((with the 1999-2001 contract. Thereafter, the sponsoring
organization may be eligible to renew its contract for one
subsequent biennium provided the sponsoring organization was
in full compliance)) with the contract and performance
indicators established by the executive director.

(5) The executive director shall develop a system for
evaluating renewal applications and make available in the
application guidelines a description of the system.

WAC 131-49-120
Procedure for selection of contracts to
be awarded.
(1) Initial contracts. The following steps will
be employed in screening and selection of applications to be
approved for initial contracts:

(a) Applications will be screened for eligibility and
completeness;

(b) A panel of application readers will be established,
to consist of board staff members designated by the executive
director, members of the advisory committee who are not
members of the legislature or employees of sponsoring
organizations, and such other persons as may be deemed
appropriate by the executive director;

(c) Within each category of application as described in
WAC ((250-44-110)) 131-49-110(1), the panel of readers will
evaluate and rank qualifying applications according to the
system published in accordance with WAC ((250-44-110))
131-49-110(2);

(d) The advisory committee will consider evaluations
prepared by the readers, and will develop a list of
recommended approved applications to be awarded contracts;

(e) The list of recommended approved applications will be
submitted to the executive director of the board for approval.
Upon approval the executive director will award the
contracts.

(2) Renewal contracts. The following steps will be
employed in screening and selection of applications to be
approved for renewal contracts:

(a) Applications will be screened for eligibility and
completeness;

(b) In cooperation with the advisory committee, or a
subset thereof, the board will evaluate qualifying
applications in accordance with WAC ((250-44-110))
131-49-110(4) and develop a list of recommended approved
renewal applications according to the system published in WAC
((250-44-110)) 131-49-110(5);

(c) The list of recommended approved renewal applications
shall be submitted to the executive director of the board for
approval. Upon approval the executive director will award the
renewal contracts.

WAC 131-49-140
Length of contract periods.
(1) Contract
periods for each contract awarded under the act shall be in
accordance with each application proposal, subject to contract
application guidelines issued by the executive director, but
shall not begin before the starting date or extend beyond the
end date of the upcoming biennium.

(2) An initial contract shall be awarded on a biennial
basis.

(3) ((A contract funded for the 1999-2001 biennium may be
renewed for the 2001-2003 biennium provided the sponsoring
organization was in full compliance with all of the terms of
the 1999-2001 contract, as evidenced by the on-site compliance
reviews.

(4))) An initial contract ((funded for the 2001-2003
biennium, and any contract funded thereafter)) may be renewed
for one ensuing biennium provided the sponsoring organization
was in full compliance with the contract and performance
indicators established by the executive director.